The grand opening celebration will be held on Thursday from 6:30 - 8:00 P.M. at the Northwest Mothers Milk Bank location at 417 SW 117th Ave. in Portland. Sen. Elizabeth Steiner Hayward, D-Beaverton, who is a family doctor, will be a guest speaker. In addition, the bank's co-directors plan to present an award to Providence Health & Services, which has long donated office space and other services to the group, the group said in a press release.

The bank, which has hired staff and shipped a milk pasteurizer from the United Kingdom, expects to begin processing donor breast milk this month.